Paul Rudd interviewed Selena Gomez for Perfect magazine and I absolutely understand why the publishers do it (the more big names in print, the better) and I absolutely understand why the actors do it (they know they are in a safe space) but man do I love a gritty little profile we can all fight over. 

 

Madonna seems to be running into issues with her biopic and takes it as a sign that this will be a fight. Like many famous artists, the underdog mindset fuels her. But biopics are tricky for living subjects, or for subjects that have an estate, because they are so aware of the legacy that the ego overwhelms the story. Everyone needs to be a hero. Of course Madonna would never sell off her life rights but it would be interesting to see her story told through the work of another writer and director. 

 

If you are not caught up on Bad Sisters second season I urge you to do so this weekend. I’m absolutely shocked by the turn it took, like up until the last second I was like “nah they would never.” It’s pretty ballsy and brilliant storytelling and this second season is dealing with the long tail of abuse and grief in a way Big Little Lies didn’t. Side note, Sharon Horgan is such a babe. Charming as hell.

 

Jussie Smollett’s conviction has been overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court and he cannot be charged again. To break it down (which TMZ, as loathsome as they are sometimes, does well for legalese), the issue was that Jussie struck a deal, fulfilled his requirement, and was still charged. To paraphrase TMZ, this case wasn’t about the merits of the case but the prosecutor’s behaviour.

 

While this isn’t outright misconduct like the Alec Baldwin case, it does have the same undertones of zealousness fueled by public pressure. 

 

Looks like Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi are entering their London years, reportedly moving to the Cotswolds. I believe they’ve bought a place in the UK and I believe they might sell their Montecito mansion because these two move a lot of real estate and have done so for years. I don’t think it’s permanent because they have a very strong social circle in Montecito and besides what the general public thinks of them, they are still very well liked in that circle. Like Jennifer Aniston isn’t rescinding the Friendsgiving invite because people on Twitter don’t like Ellen. 

 

This is a very specific story for a very specific set of Gen X’ers who read, and were maybe enamoured with A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. I am one of those Gen X’ers. Dave Eggers, the author of that wildly popular book, is a literary star, the kind who goes to Vanity Fair parties and has group chats with directors and A-listers. A new story by Gary Baum in The Hollywood Reporter is about his younger brother Toph, who is now estranged from Dave. If you’ve read the book, this is a fascinating story. Toph’s childhood was dissected and editorialised through his brother’s words and for years Toph has been trying to tell his own story, with little success in Hollywood and significant pushback from Dave. Grief, resentment, privacy, artistic license – there are so many layers to family storytelling and the roles siblings give each other. Even if you read the book 20 years ago, I’d highly recommend this piece. None of these people have a public Instagram profile, so here’s a shot from McSweeney’s, the quarterly publication that Dave founded.

 

Here's Selena out for dinner with Benny Blanco last night in LA.